Administration & Government
Long line ups, backlogs of work to be processed, deadlines not met, cut backs in service, reduced budgets, slow implementation, many signatures to get approvals and not enough hours in the day to do your work. These are some of the challenges facing administration and government agencies. These areas have been treated as overhead and as such they aren't analyzed with the same scrutiny as production environments. Staffing is frequently handled as a ratio of the production area or is based on the number or dollars in the budget. The work load hasn't changed but that isn't taken into account.
So how do we solve this? First we must agree that administrative areas have processes similar to typical production areas. There must be an acknowledgement that there are expectations of outputs from these processes which is no different than the expectations placed on production staff on the floor. Upon proper examination of these administrative processes we find that the processes have wastes/non-value built into them. Once we have established that there are wastes and understand the end-to-end process then we can initiate the elimination of the causes of the waste and improve the entire process. The result is that you are now able to meet the client/customer demand by using the new process without adding more staff, space or capital equipment. In addition, your staff are less stressed and become passionate about their jobs (pride of ownership) which creates a culture of sustainable improvement and service.
Working with our clients we have been able to identify and improve processes. Some examples:
- Reduce the waiting times for their customers
- Time to mail a result to the customer reduced from 6 days to 2 days.
- Time for new pricing reduced from 28 days to 3 days.
- Signatures for approval reduced from 5 to 1 or 2.
- Time to complete computer applications reduced by 50%
- Time to approve or reject an Engineering Change Notice form 37 days to 7 days are just a few of the results achieved.
Flow in Job Shops
It is commonly thought by Job shop management that "Lean isn't for us". "We build to order" and "We don't build 1,000 widgets a day every day".
Dealing With Bottlenecks
Before you buy a new piece of equipment because you think you have a bottleneck, use a machine balance chart so that you know the real score.
Do Not Implement a 5S Program
Is your 5S program not giving you the results that you expected? 5S needs to be implemented as part of a value stream plan, and not as a program.
When Value Stream Mapping Doesn't Work
Value Stream Mapping is a tool. It isn't a panacea for all the problems that occur in management.
A Disciplined Approach To Value Stream Mapping
Value stream mapping requires good training and a disciplined approach to yield the best results.
Exciting Chaos
Striving to improve competitiveness by providing customers faster and better products/services will accomplish more than worrying about the next crisis.
The Lean Journey - The Never Ending Story
No matter how well your lean journey is going, it's not good enough. Competitors will embrace lean and erase your competitive advantage.
Troubled Waters Require Capable Leaders
Lean leaders need to look beyond the horizon and chart the future. In stormy times, true leadership skills emerge.
Value Stream Mapping Cuts Through The Fat
Value Stream Mapping is used to draw out the entire process, identifying the flow and showing the time it takes to move through the system.
Continuous Improvement
How do Continuous Improvement teams fit in with your Lean initiatives?
Value Stream Mapping Common Mistakes
We have noticed some common mistakes with first time mappers. When the mistake is made, it is not recognized and the tool is called into question.
Einstein And The First Law Of Business Strategy
Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Ex. Competitiveness for Canadian business.
The Two Driving Questions in a Visual Workplace
A visual workplace is populated by hundreds or thousands, of visual devices and mini-systems, invented by a workforce that knows how to think visually.
Can Lean Match Your Structure?
One of the first comments we get from most companies is that they are unique. And they are right. They are not Toyota. They are unique.
5S Workplace Organization In the Office And Plant
Many of the Lean tools have originated in the Toyota Production System. The maturation/migration to non-manufacturing settings is a natural evolution.
Lean Office Implementation at MDS Nordion
3 months after starting Value Stream Mapping, our change notice paper flow is 7 days instead of 28, a remarkable 75% improvement!
Lean Goes To College
Comments from the New Brunswick Community College concerning a series of Lean workshops we delivered to the Mechanical Engineering Technology class.
Ottawa Airport: Plays an essential role in the economic growth of the National Capital Region, servicing the needs of millions of travellers each year.
Zomax: Helps companies more efficiently bring their products and content to market worldwide.
Heraeus: EUR 10B in revenue with 11,000 employees in 100 companies worldwide, For over 155 years as a precious metals and materials specialist.
CIT Group: As a Fortune 500 company and member of the S&P 500, they provide financial solutions for more than 80 percent of the Fortune 1000.
Wachovia Corporation: With over 95,000 employees, they serve banking, brokerage, and corporate customers primarily on the East Coast.
Mountain Equipment Co-op: Supplier of outdoor clothing and equipment including climbing, watersports, cycling, snowsports, hiking, and camping gear.